1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed generally to a mining machine which cuts the full face of the coal from the floor to the roof. The mining machine has a jib at its front end which carries sprockets which support an endless cutting chain. The jib is perpendicular to the center line of the machine during mining which makes it difficult to tram the machine from one entry to another entry in the mine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Mining machines having crawler tracks for moving the machine and a forward jib carrying an endless movable cutting chain with spaced cutting bits thereon for mining the coal from the full face are known in the art. The machines have spaced loading flights located on the endless chain which move cut coal from the floor of the mine adjacent the face to a conveyor extending along one side of the machine which moves the cut coal from the front end of the mining machine to the rear of the machine where it is loaded onto cars or other conveyors for subsequent removal from the mine.
The length of the jib is greater than the width of the mining machine, and it is not possible to easily tram the mining machine from one entry to another entry. The length of the jib relative to the width of the mining machine does not pose a problem in longwall mining or in room and pillar mining, but in individual entry mining, this is a problem. The problem has been solved in prior art machines by removing the jib from the machine or removing the ends of the jib, but such is costly and time consuming and causes excessive downtime of the machine.